Hospital for kids grows its audience via social media

Children’s Medical Center in Dallas uses Twitter, Facebook, and a blog to make connections and document successes.

By Matt WilsonAug. 26, 2010

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Children’s Medical Center in Dallas uses Twitter, Facebook, and a blog to make connections and document successes

It’s not often one hears about hundreds of people gathering to witness a complete and successful pediatric kidney transplant, from its start with the donor at one hospital to its 3-year-old recipient at another.

“A successful surgery wraps up at 2:30 p.m. CST,” announced the last tweet of the day. “Thank you all for tuning in, John is on his way to being a healthy, happy 3 year old.”

That live-tweeted surgery was the first step for Children’s toward implementing a comprehensive, five-year social media plan, says Betsy MacKay, vice president of public relations. And it was a huge success.

“It’s been a very hard act to follow,” she says. She and her staff of 32 are trying their best, however, adding Facebook, YouTube and a company blog to the mix.